


Of Another Kind

by Cock_Zero, replaced (nightingveil)



Category: Bandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, M/M, alien!Gerard
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-06
Updated: 2014-10-28
Packaged: 2017-12-22 15:54:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/915121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cock_Zero/pseuds/Cock_Zero, https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightingveil/pseuds/replaced
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gerard is an alien on a mission--to find a human mate on Earth. He's decided on Frank Iero, but his database doesn't give him all the facts he needs to win over his future companion, and there are just some things he will have to learn on his own.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Bare Facts

-Gerard’s P.O.V.-

Two Earth years. That’s how long I’ve been searching for a mate. Over time, there have been a few potential humans, but none seemed to be just right. They were either too involved in their work, alcoholic or addicted to something else equally destructive. I don’t know why humans put their bodies through such torture. Surely they knew the drugs and alcohol they consumed were just destroying any potential they have? It makes them age faster, faster even than they normally do, which is pretty fast by my planet’s standards. 

The last human I watched was perfect in every way, but she already had a soul mate, and I knew better than to get between soul mates. 

Four Earth months. That’s how long I’ve been watching my current potential mate. 

He is a young man, around nineteen or twenty Earth years old, with black hair that just starts to curl around his ears. I’m not sure, but I think it must be very soft. By human standards, he has unusual colored eyes. Sometimes they’re the color of honey, which is an Earth food I discovered I really like (because it’s sweet). Sometimes though, his eyes are light green, like the grass here when it’s Springtime. By observing him, I’ve learned that his face is very expressive. I can figure out most things about his feelings, just by watching his eyes. I feel…something…when I look at Frank’s eyes. Again, I’m not sure what it is, but it’s probably not very important.

He has these metal rings in his nose and bottom lip, which intrigue me. There are large holes with black rings in his ears, too. I’ve seen them on other humans before, and I wonder if it’s just how he was born. He also has these markings on his arms and neck. Part of his skin, maybe? I don’t know for sure. I find myself wondering if they are on other parts of his skin too, and if they mean something. They haven’t really covered this topic much in my study materials. Or maybe they did, and it was in the chapter I lost due to an upgrade problem, that then led to a loss of some information. I was told it wasn’t anything critical.

His name is Frank Iero. A strange name, but I like strange things. It’s the reason I came to Earth to find a mate. Humans are fascinating, if a little frail. At least, by the standards to which I’m accustomed. Frank might even be a little more frail than most of them. I’m not sure yet. I do know he’s small in stature, compared to the other males on this planet.

All in all, I think he’s what they call, “The complete package”? here on Earth. I don’t think you can actually mail a human being anywhere though, so I’m not sure why they say it, but maybe those markings are like stamps, and you get a one every time you go somewhere new. 

Walking over to my keeler, and placing a mug inside, I pressed the favorites button on the touch screen. Selecting coffee, I waited with anticipation. It was one of the few human foods that I couldn’t get enough of, and I’ve heard it called “Nectar of the Gods” by some humans. I had to look that up, but I think I understand now, because it tastes very good, especially with honey. I had to make an alteration to the keeler program for it to make that addition to my coffee. I guess milk and sugar are normal here. The machine beeped twice, a few seconds later, and I opened the door, carefully grabbing the hot mug. 

Inhaling the bitter scent, I found myself smiling. Closing the keeler’s door, I moved to the living room of the human apartment I was staying in. It was a nice building by human standards, but nothing like home. You can’t change what’s on the walls just by touching a panel, and the floor always feels cold, no matter what season it is. It’s why I have my old keeler in the kitchen, to remind myself of home. It also means I don’t have to go do something the humans seem to hate, called “buying groceries”. I don’t know why you would buy something you hate, especially as often as they do, but humans tend to eat a lot. Or maybe it’s only when they’re sad, because Frank looks sad sometimes, and he eats more then. He has something like my keeler, and it operates with a touch screen too, but he has to put food inside of it first. Then it comes out hot. Unlike me, when I grab something hot, he looks like he’s in pain. 

The iPad my younger brother bought me before I left also reminded me of home. It was a lower end model, just a cheap one that he could afford as a going-away present. It was much more powerful than the ones humans had though. While the ones Steve Jobs made for human use can only have 1 gb of RAM and 64 gb of hard drive, mine has 10 gb of RAM and 4 tb of hard drive.

Steve was the one who first created the iPad back on Xar, before he decided to live on Earth like some of our other inventors have done. It wasn’t uncommon for Xarians to move to new planets, and take their knowledge and inventions with them. My species had learned long ago that bringing our inventions with us tended to make it easier, but also we found it easier to make friends, and get money. Humans are very concerned about money. Frank talks to himself about money all the time. 

Smiling when I picked up the tablet, the dark crimson case slightly scratched from the wear and tear I’ve put it through, I was preparing to study a little more. Sitting on the couch, I set my mug on the end table, and propped my feet upon the coffee table before touching the screen. The image of Mikey and me showing up on the password screen, I quickly let the password run through my mind, the stars showing up in the box before the screen changed to the normal display. My eyes scanning over the screen, and landing on the app I needed, I watched it open. I held it up slightly, pointing the camera at the wall, and the image changed to an apartment similar to mine, but in reverse. 

No one was inside. But I knew that would change momentarily.

The front door to the apartment opening, and Frank walking in, I saw that he had his mail. He was toeing off his shoes, and pulling the strap for his bag over his head. I was guessing he’d been at work. Continuing my study, I watched as he set the envelopes on his coffee table, and walked to his kitchen, pulling a pot out of a cabinet. 

This is how I watched all my potential mates. I never interacted, unless I knew for sure they would be the one. And I had a really good feeling about Frank Iero. 

He continued with his normal ritual after coming home from his job. I learned that he worked at a department store at the local shopping center. It didn’t fit him. Frank, when I had been near him at all, felt warm to me. I hadn’t touched him, but my species don’t have to do that, to feel the physical warmth from a personality. Department stores, the few I’d been to, were always cold. And not just the floors, but those were even worse than mine. They did get to change the walls more, but there were these human-like things in the stores. That is, they looked human, but they were hard and they tended to never move. Frank is always moving. 

Frank started cooking what humans called ‘pasta’. He had it a lot, I noticed. After starting a pot of water, he went back to his living room, opening his mail, and threw away what wasn’t important. The important letters, I think they’re called ‘bills’, he set next to his computer. A computer is like my iPad, but bigger, and Frank tends to watch videos of people screaming on his, when he’s not paying bills.

Oh, but sometimes he watched videos I didn’t understand, and couldn’t find data on. It was those times that he’d take me by surprise, do things I wasn’t expecting, but very much want to comprehend. He’d touch his body. I didn’t know why, but it was interesting to watch. I had recorded the act a few times to watch again, and try to figure out what he was doing, and why. My iPad told me it caused his heart rate and body heat to rise marginally, and he often looked tired after, but he sometimes smiled. I didn’t think humans liked to be tired, so this still puzzles me. Maybe that lost chapter on skin was important after all. 

Over the four Earth months I had watched Frank, I saw he had no potential mates. In fact, except for a couple of friends that he spoke to on a communication device they call a “phone”, I wasn’t sure he had anyone. I decided that I’d make my move tomorrow, when he didn’t have to work. 

After an hour of watching, I got up and walked back into the kitchen. Grabbing a plate from the counter top, and setting it inside the keeler, I went for the selection of pizza, with pepperoni, and mushrooms. Another human food I really liked. It was similar to something I used to eat as a child back home. The machine beeped twice, as usual, and I grabbed the plate out, taking it to the living room.

Through my viewing of his apartment, I knew Frank would sort the mail, make his pasta dinner, and then sit on the couch and watch a lot of “television”. It was like the computer, but instead of a keyboard it came with a “remote control”. That part was more like my iPad. He’d push buttons over and over again, sometimes for over half an Earth hour, before settling on a program. I noticed that these programs weren’t like the videos on the computer, because there wasn’t singing, they didn’t end with Frank touching, and he made different noises when he watched them. Or sometimes, the noise was still a “groan”? but it sounded different.

He normally chose either a program they called “American Pickers” or horror movies. I was discovering that of the former, there wasn’t much to learn from my iPad, and it seemed to be about two human males driving around buying old things that had to be fixed, just so they could sell them to someone else. That is another element that confuses me. Of the latter, things could get highly specific. There were different kinds of horror movies, and he tended to choose the really bloody ones or the old ones in black and white, with either wolves or vampires. Enjoying both kinds myself, I’d often determine the channel he was on, and then try to watch the same program on my own television. It was nicer than Frank’s, because it was bigger. Humans prefer small phones, but big televisions. 

~

Today, I set my plan to make Frank my mate into action. I’m taking it slow. Humans can scare easily sometimes, and I don’t wish to frighten him, especially since he is so small. I read in my database that taking things slow means you can be friends first, and humans like that, but you have to be careful that they don’t only think of you that way. It’s called, “being in the friend zone”. I’m not sure if that means you have to move to another apartment or not. 

Grabbing my keys, I headed out of the apartment. A quick trip down the hall, and the elevator, I walked into the lobby of the building. I walked to the mailboxes, and found the one with my number. I hadn’t checked it in a few weeks. All my ‘bills’ were paid electronically, so I didn’t get the letters. Inserting the key and turning it, I saw over two dozen letters in the small metal. I grabbed them out in one handful, just as the box next to mine opened. 

“Wow, that’s a lot of mail. Don’t check it very often do you?” a voice spoke to me. I knew it. That voice. Frank is a creature of habit, and when he doesn’t work, he checks his mail between four and five o’clock Earth time. 

Looking over, I made eye contact with Frank, just as I’d planned. “No, I don’t. No reason to,” I smiled. With some humans, I have to pretend to smile. I never have to pretend to smile at Frank. He is warm. 

Frank smiled back, bright and wide. “I don’t see you very often. Do you hide in your apartment or something?” he asked, looking though the letters in his hands, which also had the markings. He then met my eyes again with his. Frank’s eyelashes were long, but the bright green color showed up easily, and I felt that…thing…again. 

“No, I just have no reason to leave,” I said, closing the mailbox and removing the key. Frank did the same, and started walking back to the elevator with me. My plan was going smoothly. The database said it was better to leave an aura of mystery about who you are, for the human to sort through, and not to be too obvious about things. I think I am supposed to know what those things are, but sometimes I have a feeling that I am missing a crucial piece. I tried asking Mikey, but he would only smile, and tell me I’d figure it out. That isn’t hard data though, and it put me at unease. I like facts. I understand facts.

We didn’t speak much in the elevator or in the hallway. I was hoping this would lead to that aura of mystery, and not just come across as me being confused. In fact, the only thing we did talk about was the whirring noise the elevator made, and how Frank hated small spaces, even though he is small. Well, and spiders.

Frank stopped at his door, and turned to me. “Maybe I’ll see you at the mailbox again sometime. Or, maybe somewhere else?” he said, and I tilted my head, curious as to what he meant. He didn’t explain though, and we just stood there looking at one another for a few seconds. 

“Maybe,” I said, unlocking my door, and hurriedly turning my eyes away. I was worried about what he might see in them or that I would give away my purpose. 

Frank opened his door, smiling at me again and said, “Well, bye.”

Smiling back, and giving him a small wave (like a human would), I left him in there in the hallway. Going through the process for a new cup of coffee first, I went back to the studying issue. I needed to find more about the fear of small spaces, spiders, and where humans go to see each other.


	2. Chapter 2

-Frank’s P.O.V.-

_Well, that was interesting,_ I smiled to myself. _Always wanted to know who lived next door. He’s pretty cute, too._

I kicked my shoes off near the door and took the mail into the kitchen, setting it on the counter. Grabbing the bread, I placed two slices in the toaster and pressed the lever down. I sorted through the few pieces of mail, throwing the junk mail in the recycling bag. “Publishers Clearing House? When the fuck did I sign up for that?” I frowned, tossing the envelope into the bag with the rest of the mail. Nothing important.

Opening the fridge, I got out the butter and raspberry jam and waited for the toaster to finish. I grabbed the toast, dropping it to the counter when it burned my fingers and took a butter knife from the drawer. After spreading butter and jam on my toast, I set them on a plate and walked to the living room, biting into the first slice as I sat on the couch. My phone rang the second my ass hit the cushion and I rolled my eyes, setting the plate on the coffee table. I dug my phone out of my pocket and frowned at the number on screen. Sliding the lock, I answered the call.

“Hello?”

_”Frank, we’re short and I need you to come in today,”_ Lance, my boss, said.

“But today is my day off,” I whined. “What about Janet?”

_”She’s on vacation time,”_ he replied.

I laid my head on the back of the couch and sighed. “Fine, what time do you need me by?”

_”Two thirty to nine thirty,”_ he said and I nodded.

“I’ll be there,” I said, hanging up a few seconds later. “Fuck, the one day I had off.”

~

I slipped the key into the front door, unlocking the bolt and stepping inside. Seven hours at work never felt so long before. I hated working at the customer service desk. It felt like everyone had a complaint of some sort and every one of those people gave me a look of loathing, their eyes focusing on the few exposed tattoos and piercings I had. They probably all thought I was an ex-con or some shit. 

Dumbass bastards.

I groaned and stretched my arms over my head, kicking the door shut. I locked it back and walked forward into my apartment, heading straight for the shower after toeing off my shoes.

Stripping off my clothes, I dropped them into the hamper, turned the water on hot and waited for it to warm up. I stepped under the spray, letting it hit my sore shoulders, and moaned. If there was one good thing about this building, it was the water pressure.

I relaxed my body under the water for a few minutes before wetting my hair and grabbing the shampoo. I cleaned my hair and body, rinsing the suds away and staying under the hot water for a few minutes more before turning the knob and stepping out of the shower. I reached for the towel and rubbed my hair before wrapping it around my waist.

Groaning and stretching again, I walked into my bedroom and finished drying my body. Dropping the towel to the ground, I crawled over the cool sheets and hugged my pillow, breathing in the dryer sheet smell lingering on it. 

I could feel myself drift off, the room warm and quiet.

A loud bang brought me back to consciousness. I jumped and sat up in bed, the cover slipping down my chest. I didn’t even remember getting under it.

Looking around my room, I saw nothing out of place. “Hello?” I called out, holding the cover to my stomach. “Anyone there?” _Yeah, like they’d really answer._

With a frown, I crawled out of bed and grabbed a pair of sweats out of the dresser, tugging them on quickly and quietly. I walked carefully to the bedroom door, my feet barely making a sound as I reached it. I peeked out into the hall, seeing nothing in the weak morning sun. I padded down the hall and to the living room.

Everything was still where I left it and the front door was locked. “Weird,” I said to myself.

The bang came again, lower this time and I looked to my left at the wall. It was coming from my neighbor’s apartment. Gerard, I think his name was. 

I walked over to the wall and pressed my ear to it, listening. All I heard was a soft mumbling and the sound of footsteps. “What the hell is he doing?” I pondered and pressed my ear closer to the wall like it would help me hear.


	3. Chapter 3

-Gerard's P.O.V.-

Something I had learned about the coffee humans like to drink, is that it makes it so I don’t sleep very much. My species don’t sleep as much as humans do anyway, only about four Earthern hours a night, but now it’s even less. I think I average two to three hours a night, which gives me a lot of time to do other things. 

When I’d gone back into my apartment, I’d had another cup of it, and then six others besides. Feeling sated finally, I’d finished reading the next few database entries. The first of them included why some humans fear certain things, but not others, even if the thing had never done anything to them. And by things, I meant Frank and spiders. Humans call this ‘arachnophobia’, which is the fear of spiders. They don’t even have to be biting spiders or big spiders or furry spiders. Any kind of spider. It wasn’t really something I had understood, but I had witnessed the effects on my potential mate, not that he knew it. 

Frank had been coming into the living room that day, so I could see him quite easily, but I’d found myself scooting forward on my couch. Then, he’d made a loud noise, and I know my eyes got very round as I watched him scramble upward. The sound was like a squealing, and he had ended up standing on the back edge of the couch, flat against the wall. His face was white, he was shaking, and there was something on the ground, because he wouldn’t look away from that one spot. 

Wondering, I had gotten closer to the wall so my device had better aim, my focus more acute, and seen this speck crawl across the carpet. It had many legs, small furry patches on each one. I waited to see what Frank would do, but he didn’t budge an inch until the spider had crawled out of the living room, into the kitchen, and out the kitchen window. All the color had come back into his face, and gingerly, he slipped off to where his feet were resting on the floor again. He didn’t go into the kitchen though, and the whole episode took over half an hour. So now, I knew about spiders. 

That had been when I first really thought maybe he should be my mate, because he’d laughed when he came down off the couch, and it was like nothing I had ever heard. I mean, I had heard humans laugh, but not like this. I’d been on Earth for the event they call Christmas, and it reminded me of the bells that had been hung up everywhere. His eyes had spiraled from the too-heavy enlargement of pupils, so the irises took over again, and they were that shade of Spring green. It made me feel warm all over. I had sighed I think, and smiled to myself. I still don’t know why, because when I looked in my database, it said my reaction wasn’t important. Still, we had introduced ourselves later, and that had been the day I thought maybe he was my perfect other. 

I’d wrapped myself up in learning about him, and about these things he did, but I liked to check my database regularly for updates or in case I had missed something important the first time I studied a topic. Now, I also had the matter of the small spaces, and the reactions mentioned in my database had been like the ones described for humans being afraid of spiders. I wondered if whether, after being trapped in an elevator and then getting out, if Frank would laugh like that again. It was these that had been my focus after we met at the mailboxes, and I had been alerted to his phone ringing. He wasn’t going to have the day off after all. 

With Frank gone so long, I had tried to sleep. My bed was the normal Xarian style, a shallow bowl shape with a curved, titanium headboard. I attempted using a normal human bed when I first came to Earth, but the square shape had not felt correct, and the firmness of what they called a mattress had made it hard for me to rest. In their own way, the beds are not unlike the other destructive behaviors humans endure, but with the beds it is every night. It is my feeling that humans can be very silly creatures sometimes. 

For my own part, I ended up contacting another Xarian on Earth a week after arriving, and acquired a normal bed. Well, normal by Xarian standards. Unfortunately, the mattress isn’t what I was used to at home, but this ‘memory foam’ was much better than the regular mattresses, and by the second week I was able to drift off without much effort. Most of the time, anyway. Today, however, was not one of those times. 

Not really wanting to get out of bed again, I’d tossed and turned for well over two hours, mind fixated on whether Frank would laugh that way when freed from being trapped or if Frank would have more pasta for dinner when he came home from work or if Frank would watch one of his videos and make those noises I still didn’t quite comprehend. It was while doing this, that I decided to get up after all, but to add to my existing database of information by frequenting the establishment the humans call a bookstore. 

This also had the added appeal that came with knowing Frank liked to read. His living room had what the humans call built-ins, which is a misrepresentation in the case of Frank’s apartment, because they are actually built-on. The shelving unit is attached to the wall, and filled what the books from top to bottom. Books, I had learned, were portable forms of entertainment in which lines of text are printed on paper in order to create a uniform story. Using my scanning feature, I had found out the titles and authors names of every book on Frank’s shelves, intent on discovering more about this printed phenomenon. 

In all honesty, I didn’t quite grasp why a human would wish to have these books, if they could read everything on the computer. The Internet most humans use, or the Information Super Highway someone had told me it was also called, but this baffles me as well, because you can’t drive a car on a computer. Well, you can, but it has to be in one of those games I’ve seen Frank play. He never actually gets anywhere with those games, just crashing into walls and so forth, an exercise in what I would venture is extreme frustration, but which he seems to quite enjoy. Humans have a seemingly endless capacity for being amused by things that get them nowhere. 

My species does not share this propensity, and so finding only frustrating in my inability to sleep, I got my shoes back on, took up my keys, and made the short walk to the bookstore that was some ten blocks away from our apartment building. I had never been inside before, and as soon as the door opened with a whooshing sound, I became aware of the scent of yet more coffee. Although some instinct was drawing me in the direction of the scent, I was cut short by a clerk popping up from out of nowhere, and offering me a cheery smile. 

“Welcome to Barnes and Noble.” She was young, I would judge around Frank’s age, but with long blonde hair, glasses, and alarming clothing. Her shirt was pink, and covered in aqua-colored dots, with a white bow tied at the collar. She was wearing a skirt with this, in the same shade of aqua, her legs merging into her feet by virtue of white hosiery and equally white shoes, which in turn boasted thick heels that gained her an additional two inches in height. 

I gathered she was trying to cultivate a certain type of look, but to me, she resembled a breakfast cereal that had been left too long in the milk, because all of her garments were drooping. My own clothing tended to all be black, because it was easier to have things match, and clothing wasn’t something to which I had been completely accustomed when I arrived. I stared, and for several long moments, she was doing the same. Finally, the awkward spell was broken. 

“May I…help you find something?” Smiling, still, she appeared friendly, but I was gaping until my brain had time to catch up. I wasn’t sure if that was rude or not, but I suppose it must have been, because she bit her lip, looked away for a moment or two, then angled her head with a slightly different expression on her features. 

“I could…even show you, if you….well, if you need it? I know all the newest arrivals.” One of the shoes was moved, her toes aimed out in a point, and her ankle turning somewhat. She’d drawn her fingers together in a clasp, and one of her shoulders was turning inward. I had the feeling I was meant to pick up on something in this interaction. 

“Yes.” All right, I had said that much, but since I wasn’t entirely sure what I was hoping to find here, explaining it to her was almost impossible. Thinking a moment, I used a smile on her. It was one I hoped resembled the sort a human male would extend toward another person, as an amicable gesture, despite the other human being a complete stranger to them. It wasn’t like when I smiled at Frank, but she didn’t seem to mind, because she began to nod encouragingly. When she said nothing more, I knew we were possibly destined to get exactly nowhere with this. I started again. 

“I have a…a friend.” So far, I thought she was with me, due to her nod increasing just slightly, but her shoulder was straightening too, and I was not sure what that indicated. Human gestures, I had learned, were not universal across the species. “My friend…has a tendency…to do this…thing…” My eyebrows were going downward, my eyes narrowing, and she mimicked this behavior, but looked no less interested than before. I was not sure how to go on. 

“Your friend is male or female?” The question was more direct than I had anticipated. Or it could just have been that the inflection in her voice altered due to some inner dialogue to which I was not privy. Somewhat at a loss, I was pondered how this mattered, and chose that as my best route. 

“Does it matter?” At the question, the edges of her lips curved incrementally higher, and this odd gleam was in her eyes. Had it been possible, I would have drawn out my iPad, and searched the database for what this could possibly mean. She’d begun to nod again, and placed one hand on my arm, which led to my eyes dropping focus to her fingers. 

“Oh yes, of course. If your friend is male, then it is very different than if your friend is female, because men and women are so different. Men from Mars, Women from Venus, as they say.” She laughed at this, squeezing my arm a bit, and I was uncertain as to how to respond to this precisely, because it could be even more unsettling than I had realized. 

“What if they are not from either place?” I paused, seeing a confounded expression flit across her features, then forged ahead with my questions. “Or does it truly work that way? I mean…we’re all humans…right?” It was folly, maybe I was throwing caution to the wind, but I had always just thought humans evolved from the same location. If the males truly did, originally arise from a planet different from that of the females, then this could be a problem. Aware that my own home’s information could be flawed, even after generations of our being present on this planet, I decided to seek out any correction that needed to be made. I wasn’t sure how this bookstore clerk knew about the planetary differences, but it seemed that the fact was almost common knowledge or ‘as they say’ would not have been an attached to the concept. 

She didn’t answer right away, and the smile remained distant for a few more moments, but then she let out a loud peel of laughter. Extricating my arm from her fingers, I was about to back up a step when she started smiling all over again and once more gained a lock with her hand. 

“Oh, you! Yes, I see what you did there. You’re one of those soulful, sensitive types of men, aware of yourself, and in touch with your feminine side. I can completely respect that.” Her voice had changed again, and her body was pivoting toward me, even leaning. I began to nod, because it had been explained that when confronted with the potentially mentally imbalanced of the human population, this gesture was typically considered non-threatening. 

“Right.” Agreement continuing, all a façade of course, I was beginning to become annoyed. My goal was not being attained quickly enough, and I wanted to be home before Frank made it back to his apartment. “About my friend…” I started, only to be interrupted. 

“Your friend! Of course. Now, is the friend like you?” The clerk was still leaning, but she had flattened her feet on the floor, and begun traipsing forward as if she already knew where we were headed. I lifted my eyes, scanning the direction in which she was taking me, and noticed that our steps were going toward the sign that said ‘Poetry’. I had not seen any books on Frank’s shelves that said this on them, and studying my database had resulted in the information that most of the texts were on horror or classic literature. 

“Is my friend like me?” Not sure where she was going with this, only that we were going toward poetry, and I didn’t know if Frank liked it, I started shaking my head. “No, no. He’s not like me.” Not wanting to get any closer to the area she intended, I stopped short, gaze making a circuit of the shelves in hopes I would recognize a name or other indicator. 

“Your friend is a he? Interesting.” I picked up on another inflection change, quickly panning my eyes back to rest on the clerk’s face, where she had begun to bite on her bottom lip. “Is your friend…rough and manly?” She had ceased to blink, and only appeared what I would judge to be eager. I could feel my eyes narrowing, my throat going dry. 

“My friend is a he, yes. Frank. That is to say…he’s not my friend, exactly. He lives in my building, and well…” Was as far as I was able to get, before she let out a sound that wasn’t too far off from the squeal Frank let out over the spider, but instead of terrified, the clerk had taken on an expression of what I believed humans termed ‘delight’. 

“Oh! I see. You need to woo him?” Woo. Did I need to woo Frank? For that matter, what was a woo, and would Frank want it done to him? I had heard Frank say wii one time, but I had the distinct impression they were not the same. That is, woo was not the past tense of the word wii. Back to the slow nodding, working my way through this, until I had a better grasp on what this woo entailed. 

She had lifted her unused hand, and now it was the clerk scanning the shelves, obviously in deep thought. She was mumbling though, and I listened to that. “Woo…not like…you.” From that thoughtful glower she had used a moment ago, she was back to all-smiles. “Come on. I think I might know what you need.” Once more, we were in motion, but she was leading me to a section with ‘Self Help’ and ‘Sexuality’ on the signs. Steered to it, and stopped in front of the section, her free hand made a flourish of a gesture that I had once heard a human use while saying something that sounded like vwala. I was still not sure what a vwala was, but I reminded myself to find out, because in this instance I knew I was looking at books, and the last time it had been coffee mugs. 

Checking the books in front of which we were now standing, I recognized one or two elements. Freeing up my arm, I used both hands to pick up a book that had a picture of two men, their chests bare, standing behind what I knew humans referred to as a wolf. At least it was familiar to me, unlike everything else since I had come through the door, and I nodded to the clerk. 

“Yes…I think this will work. He has something like this on his shelves at home.” Frank owned at least two books with wolves on the covers, and while they didn’t include images of men’s chests on them, I decided I would purchase this one. While it might not be a great resource, it was s starting point. 

The clerk laughed like before, and it wasn’t as pleasant a sound as Frank made, but I understood the intent behind it. “Good. Now, let’s see…” Her hands were to herself now, at least until she used one finger to graze along the spines of the books, this ceasing too once she found the one for which she must have been searching. “Oh! This one will be invaluable.” Pulling it down, she extended the book toward me, and I read the cover. 

“The Gay Kama…” I struggled with the word, and she went into Help Mode again. From her tone, I was reminded of a pigeon on a windowsill. I believe humans refer to it as “cooing” although why any human would wish to sound like a bird that is notorious for spreading disease, I was uncertain. 

“The Guide to the Gay Kama Sutra.” The clerk supplied, and winked at me. At least, I think it was a wink. Before I could really analyze this, she was leaning, but this time in order to glance side to side. It soon became apparent she was trying to make sure no one else was close enough to overhear her, because once this action was finalized, she whispered to me. “For those ‘special’ nights. Trust me; it will have him eating out of your hand.” Her teeth were imprinting her bottom lip, and were my iPad to hand, I was reasonably sure I would have been able to detect her heart rate speeding up. 

“Do I…want him eating out of my hand?” It sounded unsanitary, and I knew this was the kind of behavior humans tended to use for animals, which they referred to as pets. When I thought about it, however, Frank as being like an animal was not so far-fetched. Something about the softness of his eyes, and how eager he looked sometimes. I realized it actually wasn’t so unlike the picture of the wolves, and I was more than satisfied with the first choice of books. This second one… 

The clerk scoffed. “Of course you do, honey. You have to win your man, first.” She pointed to the book with the wolf on it, and then to the guide. “Then you have to be able to keep him. Dating these days, you know. Relationships don’t last like they used to, unless you know how to handle things.” She put emphasis on “handle” and winked along with it, twittering as she caught hold of my arm for the umpteenth time. 

“Now, you read those two, and you should be well on your way. But, if you both need help later, you know where to find me.” Being steered again, I saw we were turning off toward the area where the registers were, and after finally releasing me, she went around the back of the counter to ring the sale. 

I paid, because although I do not have a job like most humans do, it is possible to have deposits placed in their banks by someone in the appropriate division on my own planet. She appeared surprised when I paid with cash, perhaps because I also paid the additional fee to purchase the “discount card” a sort of paradox that was not lost on me. Still, if I were going to be visiting this place often, then it might be to my benefit to have these discounts in the future. 

Books bagged and ready, she handed them to me, and exclaimed. “You have to come back, and let me know how things go. Oh, and good luck. I hope this Frank appreciates what a rare gem you are.” I know I probably nodded to her vaguely, made some noncommittal response of the verbal kind to go with it, and hurried from the store. With any luck, the next time I came, she would not be working. From there, I walked back to my apartment. 

It was almost seven in the evening by the time I made it back, had created something to eat in the keeler, stripped down, and stepped into the hot shower. The books were in the living room, and I had considered taking a bath while I read one of them, but they were an information investment I didn’t want destroyed or made a mess by getting them wet. Despite my piqued interest, I hadn’t cracked one of them on my walk home, because I knew one of them had many pictures and I wanted to be able to fully absorb whatever material they contained. It could be crucial to the success of my mission. 

Standing under the hot spray, I thought about what I’d seen Frank do in his from time to time. There were no videos involved, but he made the same movements, and most of the same sounds. It left his face relaxed, and his eyes brighter than when he went in, two reactions that continued to puzzle me. Sometimes, he would suck in his breath, and hold it that way, then let it out in a rush as his abdomen constricted, and loosened. If I was fortunate, the books would be able to explain to me exactly what was taking place. With a renewed sense of anticipation, I washed my hair and body, got dressed, and went back to the keeler long enough to produce a cup of coffee. 

I picked up the first book on my way back into the living room, the one with the wolf on the cover, and stretched out on the couch. Taking a few sips of the hot drink, I set the mug on the coffee table, and opened the book to the first page. What began to unfold in the pages, was not what I had expected at all. 

After I’d made it through the initial chapter, I turned the book around, and noticed there was printing on the back cover as well. Reading it, I soon realized my error. This was a work of fiction, just like the horror books Frank had on his shelves. And while this one featured a cast of characters that were part human, and part wolf, that was where the similarities ended. 

I didn’t know if this would actually aid me in learning about Frank, but something about the plot line was intriguing enough, and I supposed it must have been because the main character’s circumstances were somewhat like my own. Corey had dreams of meeting his mate, and when invited on a double-date by his ‘beta?’ he hoped that the woman would turn out to be the one about whom he’d dreamt. 

Like me, however, he soon discovered things weren’t as simple, and he’d become interested in her brother instead. This, to me, paralleled my experience with Frank. The woman I had thought to pursue had already mated, and I had found it necessary to resume my search, this time setting upon a male of the species as my potential. I knew that in the animal kingdom, a beta could have at least two meanings. As I did not think the author intended for there to be a fish in the plot, and the wolf was upon the cover, it stood to reason that in this work beta had something to do with the power structure of the wolf world. 

This gave me pause. I skimmed forward a few pages, and read that Corey was referred to as the alpha in his family. If wolves had alphas and betas, and humans that were part wolf used this in their family structure, did regular humans have the same principle or was everyone considered equal? 

I recalled a chapter of information about human families that I had read early in my studies, regarding how it was not uncommon for human males ‘to wear the pants in the family’. At the time, I had taken that to mean women always wore dresses, only to find that this wasn’t true once I was on the planet. When I asked about this, I was told the database was slightly out of date, and this section needed to be revised. 

I put the book down, swinging my legs off the couch, and reaching for the iPad. Tapping a few places on the screen, I found the section I had read formerly, and saw that it had indeed received a revision. Keen about this, my coffee cup gained by the other hand, I read through what had become improved documentation on the topic. What I read, led to more questions. Pants had nothing to do with it, and neither did bacon, as long as there was some on the table to be eaten. Some family units were structured in hierarchies, and they came with elaborate titles and rituals. But I still didn’t know quite a lot. Did the alpha ‘bring home the bacon’ or did the alpha even eat bacon? Maybe only betas ate bacon. The database did not say. 

With these in mind, I glanced to the second book. The cover of it was plain, only gilded letters on a white background, but I knew this one had pictures. I felt compelled to pick it up, and read it, but I hated beginning another project before finishing the one I had already started, so I switched out the iPad for the wolf book, finished my coffee, and returned to my reading of the fictional text. ~  


Despite the coffee, and my own brain rolling with a plethora of barely formalized questions, I must have fallen asleep like this. When I awoke, it was to the sound of keys jingling, but not at my door. A glance to the clock on my mantel told me that it must be Frank coming back from work, because it was almost ten o’clock. The book had fallen onto my chest in a splayed manner, so I closed it to preserve the binding, and put it on the coffee table. My neck was stiff, and I groaned, pulling my almost unresponsive limbs off the couch until I was able to stand up, plodding off into the bedroom where I soon passed out again. 

When I awoke the next time, it was daylight outside, and I was amazed I had slept for so long. Maybe my body was adjusting to its environment, taking on a more human aspect to aid in my mission. I’d been told this might happen, but that it was a desirable trait, because it would make it easier for me to blend with the population, and to achieve my goal of acquiring a mate. Still a bit lethargic, I took care of my most pressing need in the bathroom, had the presence of mind to brush my teeth afterward, then utilized the keeler to make myself a cup of coffee, and a stack of what humans call ‘waffles’. They are basically just thick pieces of pastry with square indentations on each side, but they are one of my favorite human foods, because of the butter and syrup I saturate them in. 

By the time I was done, I felt less groggy, and decided to return to my project of the night before. This time though, the guide was my intended target, and I sat on the couch to read. As it happened, I did not stay there long, because I came upon a piece of information that I realized might be life-changing. 

With as much speed as I could muster, I was on my feet, sliding the coffee table off toward the kitchen so it was no longer in the middle of the living room floor. That done, the couch was next, and I was talking to myself as I went back and forth between reading the directions in the book, and rearranging the pieces of furniture in my space. I dragged the couch away from the wall on which it had been placed, having a harder time than I imagined would be the case, because of the carpet. Edging it along though, I made it across the room, and bumped the couch into the wall opposite its original place. 

According to the book, this would allow energy to flow more easily, engendering “a sense of peace and well-being that is imperative to the success of the act”. I knew that on stage, theatre groups had to work on making certain that props were placed for maximum efficiency, but also for aesthetics. If Frank and I were going to be acting, this alteration in my own quarters made sense. Biting on my thumb nail, I considered the two side tables that had been sitting by the couch, eventually hefting each one of them so they were back with it as a trio. The coffee table returned to the location in front of the couch, but with less space between the two. 

The instructions stated, “One only needs approximately eighteen inches,” and to let the author know if the reader found someone that “…measured up. Haha.” Haha told me this was an attempt at human humor. Eighteen inches of what? Flopping down on the couch, I was only slightly aware that the back of it thudded against the wall, because I was too focused on the wording in the book. My eyebrows must have still been knit too, when I heard a knock on my door, and went to answer it. 

It was Frank. On my doorstep. The book was in my hand, and he glanced at it, his cheeks turning a bright shade of pink. He was smiling that soft kind of smile, the one that only barely lifted the edges of his mouth, and I felt warm all over. I pulled the book toward my chest, and looked down, seeing the figures that were on his skin near each of his hips. The shirt he must have put on with his sweatpants wasn’t pulled down low enough, and when he noticed the angle of my line-of-sight, he jerked it down quickly. If it was possible, he was an even brighter shade of pink. 

“Uh, are you…okay in here? I heard banging….going on?” He wasn’t trying to look into my apartment, but he wasn’t looking at me either. In fact, it seemed he was going out of his way not to make eye contact, and after another swift glance at the book I had folded up against me, he was staring at my ‘Welcome’ mat. I had bought it when I first arrived, because the database had told me that humans would feel more comfortable in my space if I used pieces that reminded them of home. 

Not wanting him to feel uncomfortable now, and sensing it would take more than a doormat to achieve, I nodded quickly. “Yes, I was moving the furniture. I bought this book last night, and it told me that it would help.” I didn’t explain what it would help with, because I didn’t want Frank to know what I was up to, but I did step back so he could see where I had stationed all the various pieces into their new spots. Not that he’d seen them in the old ones. It wasn’t planned, but something came to me then. 

“Do you want to come in? I can make us some coffee, and maybe you can answer a couple of questions for me?” I had read once that asking a person for help, would place you at the forefront of their minds, and that this could help in sealing a bond between yourself and a potential mate. If they knew you valued their opinions, and their abilities, they were more likely to consider you. Hoping to go a step further, I straightened myself up a bit. 

“You see, I need help in the bedroom. I don’t know what to do in there. I bought this book, but I think maybe you could be of more help than it is, because it’s saying something about eighteen inches?” Putting on my most hopeful expression, and tilting my head sideways, I waited for him to respond. I don’t know why, but I think I was worried.


	4. Chapter 4

**-Frank’s P.O.V.**

“Did you – Are you, like, filming a low budget porno or something?” I asked, peering up and watching Gerard’s face. His expression went from hopeful to almost confused. “Cause, if you are, I get paid up front.”

Gerard’s face went from slightly confused to full on dumfounded. “A what? Porno?” He looked at me, moving the book in hand down to by his leg. “I-I don’t,” he started, shaking his head. “I don’t know?”

“Oh man, I’m sorry. Shit. Let’s just-let’s start over,” I offered. “What did you need help with?”

He looked down at the book, making me a little nervous. 

Why was he even holding a gay kama sutra book when he answered the door? I mean, I didn’t care if he’s gay. Whatever, man, but that’s for the bedroom. Bedroom. _Shit._

Gerard looked back up to me after a few seconds, eyes wide. “Furniture,” he said, holding the book back up to his chest. “The book said the furniture needs to be a certain way.”

“Oh, like feng shui?” I asked. He nodded slowly, almost like he didn’t understand. “I actually know dick about feng shui. It’s way too complicated for me,” I smiled. Gerard’s face fell and I felt my stomach drop. “But I could try to help,” I offered, giving him another smile.

“Really?” Gerard asked. The side of his mouth quirked up and I nodded.

“Yeah, dude. But I just have to make one request,” I said and he nodded quickly. “The book is only used for helping with the furniture, nothing else.”

“O-of course,” he said, blinking quickly. 

He seemed conflicted but I brushed the thought away. I was just helping the guy move his bed around or something. “I’ll also take you up on that cup of coffee.”

Gerard nodded, smiling brightly as he stepped back, opening the door fully. I walked passed him and into the apartment, seeing the furniture placement and the old divots in the carpet from where they had previously sat.

“Nice place,” I said, looking back at him. I folded my arms over my chest, feeling slightly exposed in my thin shirt but Gerard only smiled and thanked me.

“The bedroom is this way,” he said, pointing down the short hall. “Or would you like coffee first?”

“Coffee, please. I literally just woke up and I could use the caffeine.”

He nodded, turning and walking into the kitchenette. I followed him and sat at the table. He didn’t have a coffee maker or even a toaster in the kitchen, only a strange looking microwave. I didn’t even see any cooking utensils, just a few plates, bowls and cups.

Gerard set the book down and grabbed a mug, placing it in the microwave and glancing over his shoulder before blocking it from view. “How do you like your coffee?” he asked.

“Um, two sugars and no milk,” I said, frowning. How was he going to make coffee with the microwave? Unless he had premade coffee and just heated it up. 

There were a few soft beeps seconds later and Gerard opened the microwave again, grabbing something out. He turned and placed a steaming mug of coffee in front of me.

“How did you…?” I was shocked. The cup had been empty when he placed it in the microwave but now it was filled with coffee. Fresh coffee, by the smell of it.

I looked up, seeing Gerard turn back towards me again with another mug in his hands, steaming coming off the top. “How did I what?” he asked, sitting across from me. The book was still on the counter.

“The… the coffee. Like, there wasn’t anything in the cup a few seconds ago and you don’t have a coffee maker,” I said in disbelief.

“Um, well,” he paused, looking down at his own mug of coffee. I saw him smile to himself before he spoke again. “Let’s just say it was a magic trick.”

I chuckled. “Alright. I’ll play along.” I sipped at the coffee, humming softly. It was good, magic trick or not.

Gerard fidgeted in his seat, his eyes tracing over the tattoos on my left arm and my face went hot. I rubbed my hand over my arm, feeling the goosebumps forming. “Can I ask about your… markings?” he asked, nodding to my arm.

“Markings? Oh, my tattoos?” He nodded in response. “Sure, what do you wanna know?”

He quirked his lips for a second. “Were you born with them?”

“What? No, I wasn’t born with them. They’re tattoos. Ink under my skin,” I replied, laughing.

“Ink?” He looked really confused, brow furrowed as he looked past me. 

I nodded. “Yeah, like. I don’t really feel comfortable in my own skin so the tattoos help me be more comfortable. Does that make sense?”

His eyes widened and he smiled. “Yes. It’s like, you want to control what your body looks like,” he said and I grinned.

“Exactly.” Picking my mug back up, I finished drinking my quickly cooling coffee. Gerard’s mug was mostly empty when I pushed the mug away from me. “So, exactly what did you need moved in the bedroom? Like, the bed and dresser or something?”

“Um, yeah, I-I think so. That’s what the book says, at least,” he said, standing and grabbing our mugs. He placed them in the sink and grabbed his book again, searching for his page.

I stood and walked to the living room. Gerard passed me and walked down the hall, motioning for me to follow.

“Man, I really hope you’re not actually filming a porno,” I joked.

Gerard only hummed, flipping through the pages of his book. He entered the back room, his bedroom, and I stopped in the doorway.

“Nice bed,” I commented. “Never seen a round bed outside of one of those fancy hooker hotels they show in movies.”

“You haven’t?” he asked, looking up at me from the book. He looked back to his bed with a frown. “It’s just what I’m used to back home. I can’t sleep on a square bed.”

I hummed, placing my hands on my lower back and stretching. The bed looked heavy and the last thing I needed was a pulled muscle. “So, shall we get started?”


	5. Chapter 5

-Gerard’s P.O.V.-

“Did you – Are you, like, filming a low budget porno or something?” Frank had asked, but I could not tell what the implication of this was, and the word was unfamiliar to me. “Cause, if you are, I get paid up front.” 

I continued looking directly at him, expecting that his expression would tell me if he was serious, joking or even if it would help me understand what a ‘porno’ was. When it didn’t change substantially, and I still had nothing to go on as far what it meant, something in my chest lurched. I felt sick, and pulled the book down away from my chest, because it really did seem as though something was going to come up from my stomach and into my throat—maybe further, and I didn’t want the book ruined, if it did. “I don’t know?” It turned out be a question, because that was all I could get out beyond the toxic churning. My mind was telling me I ought to comprehend, but it wasn’t pulling up anything. 

Frank was apologizing then, and offering to start over, which should have made it better. I was faltering, however, and glancing at the book wasn’t helping as much as I had been led to believe. With nothing else to go on, I did what the humans call “grasping at straws” and ended up repeating myself. “Furniture.” That had to be the easiest explanation ever, maybe too simplistic, so I decided to added a bit more to it. “The book said the furniture needs to be a certain way.” The joke about eighteen inches was still not something I was ‘getting’ but I hoped if I helped Frank feel more at ease, I’d be able to work an explanation out of him. 

Little did I know, Frank’s brain would wander off into other areas, leaving me far behind. Just as he looked more at ease, and the sensation in my stomach began to abate, he asked another question. “Oh, like feng shui?” He asked. I nodded, uncertain what a small dog had to do with the subject of furniture or sex, but maybe Frank knew something I didn’t. Well, Frank probably knew a lot I didn’t, but that was part of the point of asking him in for coffee. 

The stipulation that the book would only be about furniture placement, it was a problem. At first, I think my eyes just blinked a few times, but at the back of my mind was the awareness that if I tried to use it in order to win Frank as my mate, then I’d be lying to him. Suddenly, everything was becoming a great deal more complicated, and I was adrift. It was unexpected, mainly because I thought I had been so well educated about humans prior to coming to Earth. Still, I found myself agreeing to his requirement, if only because I was hoping to have time to catch up. 

We went into the apartment, and I offered the coffee first, not really believing he would follow me into the kitchen where it would need to be placed in the keeler. Again, another complication, and I decided to act like there was nothing untoward about a machine being given an empty cup with nothing added, and being able to deliver it back again with contents. 

I intentionally left the book on the counter when I returned to Frank, giving him the cup, and sorting out that the act I’d just performed was only that, an act, a magic trick. With the book not so close, Frank continued to seem at ease, which is what I had wanted the most. He was even willing to ‘play along’ with my explanation, so I decided to try a new tactic. 

There he was, the beautiful designs imprinted all over his skin, and I almost couldn’t stand it. I’d made a cup of coffee for myself too, but now that the churning was gone from my stomach, that area was filled with the curious warmth again. My throat felt dry, there was a thudding in my chest, and my fingers were going to clutch the mug harder, just so I didn’t end up reaching for Frank. It was inexplicable, but everything in me was craving. Craving was not something my species did often, as we normally had anything we wanted within easy reach, just the touch of a button. 

This was different. This was very different. Not knowing what else to do, I pressed on with the conversation, and used the markings as a means of learning more about Frank. “Can I ask about your…markings?” I wasn’t sure if it came out oddly or not, but my voice didn’t sound right to my ears, and Frank didn’t grasp my meaning right away.

Once we got past that issue, well the latter one at least, I had some better knowledge of him in two ways. First, I now knew that ‘ink’ wasn’t something humans were born with; it was somehow bestowed later. Secondly, I knew Frank didn’t feel comfortable in his own skin. I felt all twisted inside then, because I couldn’t imagine someone as lovely as Frank not feeling comfortable with how they looked. As he explained, I drank most of my coffee down, but it didn’t help with the sensation of my throat being parched.

I understood now though at least, and that helped the twisted feeling dissipate. Frank was smiling, and it wasn’t just one of those small ones. It was enough to show the top row of his teeth, including the single one that was set back a little from the rest. Everything in me changed then, and I couldn’t say why, but it was like a switch had been flipped. I smiled back, and couldn’t imagine anything nicer than having Frank across the table from me every day, both his face and coffee easily within reach. 

This time, it was my brain wandering, but he was bringing us back on track. Getting the mugs picked up and placed in the sink, I collected the book, so I could review it once more. The eighteen inches still didn’t make sense to me, but I walked past Frank, and off into the bedroom to analyze the situation. 

While I was reading, Frank was making another joke about the porno. I really would have to look up that word when he was gone or something. Not sure what else to do, I only made a noise with my lips pressed together, and kept my eyes on the pages so it would seem like I was completely engrossed. The truth was, now that Frank was in my most private of spaces, that thudding in my chest was escalating. 

‘hooker’ wasn’t a word I knew either, and that didn’t help matters. It was too much, and too fast. Frank had been the uncomfortable one, and now it was my turn. Willing my breathing to remain normal, I risked a look from him, to the bed, when he talked about its shape. I would have been safe too, if I hadn’t noticed his hands going behind him, planting to the area right behind his hips, and that t-shirt edging up to show more ink. 

Birds. There were birds on his lower torso. One of them had a ring around its head, and the other one had on a little mask, and I was done. I didn’t mean to stare, and to shut off my own increasing fascination, I slammed the book shut. That was when a noise did happen, gurgling up from my throat as I dropped the book. “Ack!” I dropped the book on the floor, and cradled my hand to my chest.

Frank looked startled, jumping out of his perfectly inked skin nearly, and his hands dropped by his sides. “Are you all right? What happened?”

“I….I don’t…know. I…the book it…” There was blood pooling up on the edge of my finger, beginning a slow slide and trickle down the side, and starting to coat the area between that finger and the next. I realized I was shaking, not sure what to do. Something similar had happened the first time I tried to cut something in the kitchen. 

Frank giggled at me, but reached for my hand, and started leading me from the bedroom. “Come on. Let’s get you into the bathroom, and we’ll put a bandage on it.” He didn’t ask me where the bathroom was, because the layouts of our apartments were so similar, and he kept his pinch on my finger as he led me into the next room. 

After the initial burn of the cut, and moment of surprise, I was fine. Blood on my finger didn’t scare me, at least not in comparison to the sensation welling inside the rest of me. I nearly stumble, but it was because I was seeing a new side of Frank, and didn’t know what to make of it. Led, I followed, and we made it into the bathroom where he lowered the toilet seat for me to sit on. 

“Do you have supplies? I mean…for this sort of thing?” His voice sounded softer than before, reassuring, and his eyebrows were lowered further over his eyes. They gone a sort of mossy color, but it could have been a trick of the light, as it was a bit darker in here without the overhead on. 

“I…uh….no. I haven’t had a chance to…to get any.” Meanwhile, my finger was losing less blood, but it was more than a bandaid was going to be able to fix. 

“Well, I am always getting hurt, so I have stuff back at my apartment. You stay here, and I’ll be right back with it, okay?” Frank’s eyes met mine, and I was nodding quietly, agreeing because I was in a trancelike state. 

There was an awkwardness there, like he didn’t know what to make of my behavior, and he muttered something about shock. When he got up, he was backing away slowly, but his gaze never faltered and he smiled just a little. Only once he was standing in the hallway did things change, and he put up his own finger to show me what I knew meant ‘one moment’ and then he took off. I heard the door close to the apartment a few seconds later.

Groaning, I jumped to my feet, and looked in the mirror over the bathroom sink. I don’t know what I thought I would see. An obvious physical change? Or something? But no, there was nothing. It was the same black hair that was thick, shaggy, and probably too long for human fashion, wide-set olive eyes, and a pointed nose over a mouth someone told me ‘looked like an artist’s smudges’. I still had no idea what that meant exactly.

Maybe that was the problem. Here I was, trying to get…get…a mate. No, not just a mate. Not anymore. Somehow, and it was stupid, and illogical, and no one on my planet would believe me if I told them, but Frank being here had meant something to me. Yes, I still wanted him as my mate. Frowning at my own reflection, I knew I wanted him to like me, to want to spend time with me other than what would be required by mating. I wanted…

That was as far as I was able to go, before I heard the door to the apartment open again, and I quickly spun around to sit on the toilet seat again. Frank darted into the bathroom less than a second later, gave a quick glance to the space I had just occupied, and then shook his head with one side of his mouth quirked upward. He probably thought he had been imagining me standing there or it had been his own shadow as he raced back into the room, but he didn’t comment on it. Instead, he put down the supplies on the edge of the sink, and lowered down to crouch in front of me. 

“All right now, let’s get this fixed.” His eyes weren’t on anything but my finger now, but I offered him out my hand, cupping the main part of it in the palm of the other one, with the fingers extended. He started the minor task of bandaging me up as I felt my heart racing. There was a lingering smile poised on his lips, and I couldn’t help but wear one of my own. As confused as I was, this felt right. 

The truth is, I would have probably just sat there and watched him quietly as he worked on my finger, if Frank had initiated conversation. So in my own mind was I, that I didn’t even realize at first that he had been speaking, and I had to ask him to repeat. “I’m sorry. What?” I felt my skin burning, but I wasn’t sure if that was the contact or the fact I didn’t catch his words the first time.

He giggled. “I said, you really should get some of these things yourself, in case you get hurt and I’m not around to take care of you.” From his enterprise, he glanced up at me, but I think he meant it as a joke. 

“Oh. Right. Yes, you’re right. I should.” Nodding along to agree, I had to keep my mind off the idea of Frank being here to take care of me anytime something bad happened. I smiled, because he snickered about something, and I liked the way it caused the edges of his eyes to crinkle. 

“I guess with your finger in a bandage, we won’t be able to move the bed. I can come back tomorrow, and help, but it will have to be after I get off work.” Taping the gauge down, he edged his feet back so he wasn’t directly in front of me, and stood up. He threw away the box the square had come in, and snapped the tape dispenser back into a closed position to keep the tape clean. I noticed he hadn’t ripped the tape, but had actually brought a small pair of scissors to make the cut. Piling it all back into the blue emergency kit, he glanced my way again.

“Umm…sure. Yes, that sounds like a good idea.” The heat had gone from my face, and I felt more normal now. Not knowing where to go with this, I started with his name, and hoped inspiration would strike within seconds. “Frank? Umm…thank you. I mean…for taking care of me.”

From being basically expressionless, Frank lit up again. “You’re welcome. Glad to help.” He stopped then, biting into his bottom lip on one side. I briefly imagined what his lips would taste like, but it was brought to a halt when he asked me about me coming to his apartment.

“Look, I don’t know if you will be able to deal with it here, but I’m awake now, and I make a mean omelet. If you like, well…you can come over in say…thirty minutes?” As soon as he said this, he was back to nibbling on that same spot on his lip, but his eyes were showing more. There was a trouble in them. Or something very much like that. I noticed he was holding his breath too, and I wondered if he was just being nice, and didn’t want me to come over at all. 

For my own part, I just wanted to know what an omelet was, and how it related to my finger or moving furniture. Not having an answer, and Frank acting oddly, I decided I would let him off the hook. Shaking my head, I declined the offer, when all I really wanted to do was accept.

“No…I…I think I will just stick it out here. I’ve…well, I’ve got some studying to do, and not a lot of time to do it in.” It was true. If this exchange had been anything like the ones in the future would be, I needed to find out a lot more about interacting with humans. I also needed to find out what a porno was, and why Frank seemed so interested in them that he repeated the word. I had found that when humans were keen on something, they mentioned whatever it was a great deal.

“Oh, you’re…you’re a student? I get that. I mean, I’m not. I left the university after about a year, because I didn’t want to study English after all. I like to read, but it’s not my passion.” He nodded, but he wasn’t meeting my eyes again, and he picked up the box in readiness to take it with him. 

Not wanting him to misunderstand me, because humans had a phrase about ‘honesty is the best policy’ and I didn’t want to lie to Frank, I tried to figure out a way to tell him what I was doing, without giving away my exact goal. “Not exactly, no. I’m in…public relations. I do translations for…visitors.” I hoped that would suffice.

His head pulled back a bit, and now he was looking at me, albeit strangely. “Really? I wouldn’t have pegged you. You don’t seem the type.” He turned bright red then, because my eyes had widened, my chest hammering because he was using yet another term I didn’t know. 

He groaned, I didn’t know why, if he was in pain or what, but then he was giggling-nervously this time. “What I mean to say is you don’t look like someone that would be in public relations.” The giggling went on for a few more seconds, and I laughed a little along with him, because the sound was infectious. 

“Well, I…uh…I really like studying other cultures. And…my teachers said I was very skilled with tongues…” I found myself clearing my throat as I stood up next to Frank. Not sure what else to say, I pressed my lips against one another, and my eyes flickered to his. 

He’d already stopped nibbling, but in a self-conscious way his tongue made a swipe along the bottom one now, and his focus dropped back to the first aid kit in his hands. Fidgeting, he took a step or two back, and then half turned to exit the bathroom. “That’s…that’s cool.” He made a smaller noise, one I couldn’t identify except to say it sounded like a whimper? and then continued. “Maybe you can…tell me more about it…sometime.” Now he looked flustered, and I wanted to help, even if I wasn’t sure how to go about it.

“Yes. I will. Absolutely.” If I sounded too emphatic, and my head was bobbing like a toy on a shelf, I hoped it would still do the trick. Giving a curve to my lips, I wanted it to be encouraging, and I knew there was sincerity in my eyes. That warmth was mounting again. 

As it was, Frank let loose a breath, but now it was his eyes that were widening. I wasn’t sure if he was horrified or what, and I didn’t end up having time to ask, because he suddenly blurted out. “I should go!” Turned around, and practically ran from the apartment before I even had time to properly hear the words out of his mouth. 

Nonplussed, I stood alone in my bathroom, and just stared at nothing for a few moments. I’d clearly done something, but this time, I didn’t have any idea what it was. There had not been a problem with verbiage, or so I thought, but Frank had been obviously nervous. Stricken, I realized I’d done the very thing I had tried so hard to avoid. I’d made him skittish, and he’d run from me. It felt like there was a lead weight on my chest, and I couldn’t breathe.


	6. Chapter 6

-Frank’s P.O.V.-

I rushed out of Gerard’s bathroom, trying to pretend I didn’t see his confused face as I walked down the hall and out of the apartment. Quickly, I entered my own apartment, closing the door behind me and locking it.

“Stupid! Stupid!” I cursed myself, stepping into the kitchen. “He didn’t mean that, you fucking idiot. He meant languages. He’s skilled in languages. God, I’m so fucking dumb.”

With a sigh, I placed my hands on the countertop and shook my head. 

“Are you really that desperate?” I asked myself. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Opening my eyes and glancing at the wall separating our apartments, I frowned. “He probably already has a boyfriend.”

I sighed again and stood up straight. Since I had suggested it to Gerard, even if he refused, I still wanted an omelette. I grabbed three eggs from the carton and set them on the counter before opening the salad crisper and taking out a bell pepper and a tomato. I took an onion out of the wooden bowl on the counter and started preparing the vegetables, peeling and dicing them.

I opened the cabinet and grabbed out a bowl, cracking the eggs into it and whisking them with a fork. I added the vegetables and set the bowl aside as I prepared the pan, adding butter and waiting for it to melt.

It took only a few minutes for the eggs to cook on one side after adding them. I flipped them, browning the other side. Taking a plate from the cabinet, I flipped the omelette onto it, smiling at the perfection. I was getting better at them. I grabbed a fork from the dish drainer and took my plate to the small table.

After eating and cleaning the dishes, I grabbed my keys and headed down to the lobby. I opted for the stairs this time. I still didn’t trust that elevator.

I made my way over to the mailboxes and inserted the key into mine. There were a few pieces of junk mail and a small rectangular box. I grabbed the items out and closed the box, locking it back and removing the key. I looked at the address on the package and grinned. 

It was what I had been waiting for. I ordered it over a month ago.

I hurried back up to my apartment, wheezing as I made it to my floor and leaning against the wall for a moment. After I caught my breath, I walked to my door and unlocked it, stepping inside. I tossed the junk mail into the recycling and grabbed a knife from the drawer, slicing open the tape on the box. I set the knife down and walked to the living room, sitting on the couch as I opened the box.

A slightly smaller box slipped out and, just as I started to open it, my phone rang. I groaned, setting the box next to me and grabbing the handheld off its receiver.

“Hi mom,” I said, poking at the box with my fingers.

 _”Hi Frankie. How have you been keeping? Do you need any money? Or anything for the apartment?”_ she asked.

I shook my head, smiling. “I’m good and nah, I don’t need any help. I’ve been paying my bills on time and everything,” I said. “Although, I could use a few extra blankets. Y’know, for when winter rolls around and I’m too cheap to use the heating.”

My mother clucked her tongue and I laughed. _”Of course. I’ll get them out of the storage box for you.”_

“That’d be great.”

 _”So, anything new happen lately?”_ she asked. _”Meet anyone new?”_

I rolled my eyes, knowing exactly what she meant. “Well, I met, as in just spoke to and nothing more, my neighbor.”

_”Ooh, do tell, Frankie. Is she pretty?”_

“Well, for one, it’s a he,” I said, rubbing my face. “And, yeah, I guess you could say he’s pretty. And before you ask, I think he’s already dating someone.”

She faked a gasp, _”The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind.”_

 _Sure it hadn’t,_ I thought.

 _”Oh, your father and I were wondering if you’d like to come home for dinner on Sunday? I’m making your favorite,”_ she offered.

I pursed my lips, thinking. “Yeah, sounds great. I’ll get the bus in around noon.”

 _”Alright, hun,”_ she said and I could hear the smile in her voice. _”I just wanted to make sure everything was going well and I’ll see you on Sunday.”_

“Okay, bye mom,” I said, glancing over at the box on the couch.

 _”Bye bye,”_ she said, hanging up seconds later.

I pressed the end call button on my phone, set it back on its receiver, and picked the box back up. I instantly stood and walked to the bathroom, kicking my shoes off on the way.

Stripping my clothes off quickly and tossing them into the hamper, I turned the shower on hot. I opened the box fully and grabbed out the dildo, feeling the weight in my hand.

It wasn’t too heavy but it wasn’t too light either. The soft silicone was pliable and a little squishy and not too thick. The main reason I got it was for the suction cup on the bottom. My arm always cramped up when I used my other one in bed.

I stepped into the shower and rinsed my body, sighing at the heat. “Now, how to do this,” I hummed, looking down at the dildo in hand and then to the wall behind me. I didn’t want it to be too high or too low.

I looked down at the shower floor and shook my head. Having it stuck to the floor would just hurt my knees.

With a nod, I decided on how I would use it. Relaxing my body and leaning forward, I gripped the shower rod with one hand and pressed the tip in. I winced, my body tensing before I relaxed again and slipped it farther in.

I groaned softly and removed my hand. It still didn’t feel like a real cock but I would deal with it.

Moving back towards the opposite wall, I felt the warming tile under my ass. I adjusted my position and used my fingers to press the suction cup to the wall, giving my body a shift forward to make sure it stuck. I smiled when it didn’t budge.

I started moving slowly, gripping the shower rod to give me leverage and moaning softly. I arched my back and whined when I found my prostate, fingers tightening around the rod as I sped up.

“Fuck,” I panted. I clenched my eyes shut, bit my lip and reached down to jack myself off. It was easy enough for me to keep a good rhythm at first, but my legs started to shake and I rocked my body faster, moaning louder. They echoed off the tile walls and the shower did nothing to dull them. I started to pant, my back arching more as I let out a loud groan and came on my hand. 

The last thing that entered my mind was Gerard. His lips, his hands, his soft looking skin.

My whole body shook and I slowly pulled off the dildo and settled on the floor.

“Jesus.” I leaned back against the wall, rinsing my hand under the spray. “Fucking thinking of some guy with no interest in me,” I groaned, closing my eyes. 

It never failed. I’d see some hot guy and think of him as I jerked off. But at least I never saw any of those guys again. They were just people I saw on the street. This one, however, was my neighbor.

And I was going to see him again tomorrow. “Shit.”

I sighed and stood back up, washing my hair and body before popping the dildo off the wall and cleaning it. I grabbed a towel and dried quickly, rubbing most of the water from my hair. I then dried the toy off and took it to my bedroom, shoving it in my underwear drawer and grabbing out clean boxer briefs. I dressed, pulling on my sweat pants and an oversized shirt and walked back to the living room, dropping down onto the couch and turning the TV on.

Putting it on comedy central, I stretched out and rolled over to my stomach, watching some comedy movie that was playing. I wasn’t sure what it was called but Adam Sandler was in it.

I dozed off before the end credits were finished rolling.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so very long to get done. I've been insanely busy with work, and some personal issues. Thank you for being so patient.

I stood there, alone and confused, and sick and even disoriented, for at least another ten minutes. I simply had no idea what to do, because I didn't know what I'd done wrong. Was I horrible? Did he hate me? That stomach churn had come back, full force, and my eyes tracked back to the mirror again. The hazel was darker, again a possible lighting issue, but I didn't think that explained it all away. No, this was something else. I felt...

And then it hit me. I felt...Were my kind supposed to feel anything, when it came to the chosen mate? The purpose of choosing a mate was a species issue, continuing lines, even when two males were brought together and utilized one of the possible options available on my planet for making a family possible. There were various forms, but none of them had really been uppermost in my mind lately. I'd been entirely focused on winning Frank over, on learning everything about him. Convulsing, I lost some of the coffee in the sink, but washed my mouth out afterward to lose the sour burn.

The churning was better, but the tightness in my chest hadn't been alleviated at all, and my trudging steps took me back to the bedroom. I'd slept already, so it wasn't a need for that, necessarily. I was exhausted though, and lifted the downy white duvet cover, sliding under until I couldn't see anything outside my snowy domain. The edges tended to be thinner where the duvet inside didn't quite reach, so I could breathe, and I realized my eyes were blurry. Sliding a hand up toward my face, the tips of my fingers touched the wet streaks, more of them forming as salty drops escaped my eyelids.

This...this was crying. It was another thing I'd seen humans do, although my own species wasn't particularly prone to it, because our living situations are so rarely uncomfortable. I'd seen it happen to Frank, especially late at night when those 'commercials' would come onto the television, and people would ask the humans to help abused animals. Frank always cried at these, and I'd seen him pick up the phone at least twice to donate to the cause. Frank again. Frank who was colorful, and soft, and full of smiles, and...I'd frightened enough that he fled from the place where I had hoped he would feel most comfortable. Miserable, I turned my face into the mattress, the cotton soft and inviting, but wet through as my shoulders started trembling, and I could feel sobs wracking every inch of me. I'd stopped trying to stop the flow of tears, and gripped the edges of fitted sheet and pillow above my head, needing something tangible in my grasp. What was I going to do?

Time waits for no man, the humans say, and it hadn't waited for me. I'm not sure how long I was like that, and it was still daylight outside when the phone rang. I was tempted not to answer it, but only one person had my home number, so I cautiously snaked my arm free of my cocoon. Locking my hand around the cradle, I dragged it under with me, taking as deep a breath as I could.

“Hello, Mikey.” I wondered why he called the land line, but wasn't left to wonder about that at least, overlong.

“Hi. You didn't pick up your cell...” Normal mode of communication, and I had to get through my muddled brain to recall I'd left it in the living room.

“No...I...it's...I forgot it in the other room.” Mikey knew the layout of my apartment, as he was the one that had chosen it for me, so he also knew that the regular phone was only in the bedroom.

“Why are you...in bed?” He didn't really wait for me to answer, which was just as well since I was still struggling to return to normalcy. “Gerard, what's wrong? Are you ok?” Mikey was hard to alarm, but he knew uncharacteristic behavior in me, and that state was on the fringe of his voice.

“No...I mean...Yes, I just...” Sucking in a deeper breath, I tried to explain. “I think I messed it up...with...with Frank.” Using his name, which I'd done only twice with Mikey prior to this.

“Your...your human.” It wasn't actually a question, based on his tone, and he made a hmmming sound. “What happened. And...are you...are you crying?” He actually sounded a little shocked, and I sank inside.

“I don't know...Mikey. I...tried to buy books to figure out the...the copulation and 'wooing'? Thing...and...oh...he asked if I was making a porno, and I said I was good with my tongue, and...he ran away.” At this point, I was building to hysteria, and I didn't even know why. My people 'don't do' hysteria, as the humans put it.

“Gerard, calm down. He...porno...sex? Wait, you were buying books on sex? Why? What happened to your database?” He was talking too fast for my brain to really keep up with, and then he groaned. “Wait, did you not ever get the update?” I almost heard humor in his voice then, and shriveled up, so I lashed out.

“Oh, sure. It's all fun, and wonderful, and perfect with your mate. She's...you...You've got it all figured out.” I wanted to slam the phone down, but I knew that wasn't going to occur. We both did. I needed Mikey.

“Look, go to the iPad, and install updates with files LD746.23 through .58. We're in the United States, so those should be all you need for the next short while, so you will understand standard definitions, connotations, devices, etc. If you need anything else though...call?” He was checking now, because I had been in need before, and not called him.

I'd begun nodding, but he couldn't see that, so I stammered. “Yes...yes, I will. Th...thank you...Mikey. I...he makes me warm.” I hadn't been sure if was something my brother needed to know, but I knew it was as soon as I heard him inhale sharply.

“Shit, Gerard. If your experiencing sharp temperature spikes, you have to win him. He's...the One.” The One. It was a vague concept even in our culture, a sort of nebulous, fairy tale idea that I didn't really know if anyone had ever reached.

Nodding again, but I cut myself off, and sat up unsteadily. The duvet slid off my shoulders, and I looked at the watery outline of the outside world through the matching curtain on my window. “I...I'll do the installation. Bye...Mikey.” Unnerved, and not sure what else to say, I let the cradle fall back onto the phone base, just hearing him say his return farewell before the click of contact.

Wiping my eyes, and taking another breath, I felt more stable. At least now, I had a plan. I wasn't adrift.

Leaving the bedroom, I ventured back to the living room, and picked up the iPad. Punching in a few actions on the screen, I watched the spinning image that told me a download of information was in process. The files were enormous, and now I had an inkling of just how much I had really missed out on. That did enable the pressure to rise off my chest some, and I put the device down so it could finish the installation, wondering what to do while it was completed.

The device at least had the ability to download, while still in use for other functions, so I changed the setting to enable checking on Frank. The living room was empty, and I supposed he must have gone for his mail at some point, because there was an empty box by his own phone. Curious, I adjusted the eye on the iPad, and let it roam until I discovered that he was in the shower. But what was he doing?

There was something in the shape of a cylinder in his hand, and it struck me as vaguely familiar. There was an object like it in Frank's bedside table, and I'd watched him use it two or three times. He hadn't appeared to like that first one much, as he kept pulling it out, and readjusting it, over and over again. These were some of the times when his temperature rose, his breathing rate increased, and he would make the sounds.

This one was different though, had a base that he attached to the wall, and he didn't have to struggle to manipulate. That being the case, I was still puzzled by the fact he slid onto it, and repeated those same rockings of his pelvis that had it entering, all but leaving, and entering him again. The water was pounding onto his shoulders and neck, the hot steam making whispy ghosts in the air, and I found myself sitting down on the hallway floor where I could get a better angle.

As the drops of water course down over the ink, the movements of his hips, and sucking in of his abdomen, caused the birds to appear—fluttering. Just a few times he'd rise on his toes, make a sound like an expectant hitch of his breath, then lower with a pleasured groaning noise.

Pleasure.

That was it.

Frank wasn't in pain.

Frank wasn't sad.

Frank enjoyed this.

Frank was doing this on purpose with this...this object, because it brought him pleasure. The sides of lips were curving, and his eyes were closed, but he looked awash in more than just the water that was sliding in rivulets over the guns inked onto his back, and the various more colorful markings littering his arms.

The sensation in my chest, it altered. I didn't feel choked. I felt...angry, bereft, and jealous. Why that....that thing? As he continued the process, I watched, captivated, as his small fingers encircled his cock. It was a word I knew in a vague sense, but I hadn't really understood the significance, when watching Frank in the darkness. One of his hands was holding safely to the rod of the shower, but with the other he was beginning to stroke, and I watched muscles and tendons attenuate and tighten with each carefully applied movement. His head tipped backward, and he was rocking with more purpose, although I didn't yet know what that was. The upward rise to his toes had ceased, but he didn't stop the adjustments on the thing attached to the wall, and in fact those began to relate in time with each stroke.

As his speed and vocalizations increased, so did my breathing, and I'd flattened my forehead against the wall now, as if that might draw me closer. The device was mere inches from my face, so I had to look downward to truly make out what was happening, but my own breath was become labored and I was aware of discomfort behind the zippered panel of my jeans. Groaning, and needing some relief, I pushed my hand down to the front and shifted the fabric. The longer I watched Frank though, the harder it became to keep still. Harder. I choked.

By the time Frank let out a final groan, and I watched a flood of liquid rush from his cock to his fingers, I was in pain. It wiped out the previous feelings of anger and jealousy, but I didn't know what to do. Frank was drying himself off, and getting to leave his bathroom, but I was so distracted that I tremulously set the iPad down. Unzipping the front of my jeans did help, but it wasn't enough, and I fought with the layer of my boxer briefs too. I was shaking so much I could barely function, and pivoted with my back to the wall, so I had room to work.

Work...what? Pulling my own cock? out of the front, the cool touch of my fingers made me whine at the back of my throat. Too much, too soon, and not enough. Like all the things related to Frank so far, but right now I didn't care what he was doing. I'd seen he seemed fine, but I was not. Not sure what I was doing, I gripped down by the base as I'd seen Frank do, then sloped up and outward. It was as if a bolt had been shot up my spine, and the back of my head was grinding into the wall, but it felt right. Repeating the gesture, I bit into my bottom lip, and started working myself harder, faster, with more focused intent.

Frank on his bed.

Frank with the tattoos warming in sunlight.

Frank on my bed.

Frank's green eyes aimed at me as he laid on his stomach, arms folded as support to his own head under the pillow, the pillow next to mine, in my bed, watching me touch myself. It was all in my imagination, but it was so real, and was the image of his lips lifting in warm delight that sent me over the edge. My hips had been bucking forward as I stroked myself, because while in my brain I didn't know what to do, it seemed my body had caught on. A warm coil of sensation, and then spasms had been catching at my stomach and lower, and just as the smile I visualized hit its peak, the same flood I'd witnessed from Frank, spilled in a heated form over my own fingers. Shaking uncontrollably, I waited as my breath leveled out, but I was smiling in the midst of my exhausted state.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long to write and is so short. Personal issues and lack of motivation got in the way.

I paced the living room, biting my nails. “Just do it. Go over, help the guy out, and leave. No harm, no foul,” I mumbled. After a moment, I stopped and took a deep breath. “Okay. I can do this.” Grabbing my shoes, I quickly tugged them on and laced them up, pocketing my keys and leaving the apartment.

Once I was in the hall, the worry came back. I knew I'd have to make up a good excuse for leaving but would Gerard believe it? Guess I'll have to find out.

I took the short walk down to the next door and knocked three times, stepping back a half step as I waited. Gerard opened the door quickly and I briefly wondered if he knew I was outside.

“You came back,” he said, making me nod dumbly.

“Yeah. Look, sorry about runnin' out yesterday. I uh, I thought I heard my phone ringing,” I lied, smiling weakly.

The look on Gerard's face told me he knew I was lying but he didn't call me out so I counted it as a win.

“Did you still need help moving furniture?” I asked, rubbing my hands together.

“Oh, yes. The bed and dresser,” he said, stepping back and holding the door open.

I nodded and walked into the apartment. Seeing the living room furniture again made me realize it really was a good layout. Somehow it made the room seem bigger.

“Coffee?” Gerard asked, motioning to the kitchenette.

“How about after we move the stuff?” I replied, getting a nod. “How's your finger, by the way?”

Gerard picked up the book he'd been using, pausing to look at his bandaged finger. “It's fine. Doesn't even hurt anymore,” he said. He headed down the hall and I followed after, walking into the bedroom. 

The round bed still confused me. “Hey, mind if I try out your bed?” I asked. Grinning at Gerard, I turned and dropped down to it, sinking into the mattress with ease. “Oh man, this is nice. I'm gonna have to get me one of these.”

“I-what are you doing?” he asked, voice strained.

I sat up to see Gerard looking confused and... something more that I couldn't place. “Oh shit!” I jumped up instantly, feeling ashamed. “I'm sorry. That was totally uncalled for. Um, sorry.” He didn't say anything so I cleared my throat. “So, where does the bed need to be?”

Gerard quickly flipped to a marked page, reading it over before instructing me. 

Together, we moved the bed to the wall facing the window, placing the dresser off to the side and the night stand back beside the bed.

It was then I noticed the red iPad. “Dude, you have one of those?” I asked, pointing to it. “Those are expensive. Like half my monthly paycheck. Are you secretly loaded?”

Gerard shook his head, seemingly confused. “No, I'm normal. Like you,” he said.

“Okay, I believe you,” I said, laughing. “I was only joking. So, is there anything else that needs to be moved?”

“No,” Gerard replied after looking through the book again. “No, I think that's it, but thank you for helping me.”

“It's no problem,” I smiled, moving to the hallway. “I'm here to help if you need me.”

Gerard followed me out and back to the living room. “Oh, coffee. Two sugars and no milk, right?” he asked, walking over to the kitchenette.

“Yeah.” I was impressed he remembered. “Thanks.” I sat at the table and watched him grab the mugs, placing one in the microwave like yesterday. Being quiet, I leaned over and tried to see what he was doing and how his 'magic trick' worked. All I saw was him pressing buttons on the machine before it beeped and he grabbed out a steaming mug. “You'll never tell me how that trick works, will you?” I asked, taking the mug and placing it on the table.

“I, uh,” he started before I cut him off.

“I know, I know. 'A magician never reveals his secrets',” I recited, chuckling.

He sat opposite me and smiled. “Um, yeah. Never reveals,” he said, clearly confused but I didn't mention it.

“So,” I said, sipping the hot drink. “If you're not busy on Monday, um, w-would you like to see a movie? With me?” I kept my eyes down, not wanting to see his face when he refused. I knew I was pushing my luck by asking. He probably already had a boyfriend.

“A movie? Like the ones on television?” Gerard asked.

“Well, yeah. But I meant in theaters,” I said. “There's this new Marvel movie that's just come out, supposed to be great. How 'bout it?”


End file.
